My friend Oishi called me Friday afternoon asking, “What is your plan for this day?” Since I had finished my lessons for the day, then she insisted that we go shopping following an introduction to her friend.

She informed me that, “The prices are so cheap on Nike and Levi’s and everything, but I don’t know how to say why.” I quickly discovered that all of the clothing and sneakers were counterfeits.

Nearby “Walking Street” or “Jianghan Lu”, which I have discussed briefly before (mainly commenting on its obscene amount of Nikes, Adidas, and combination of Nikes and Adidas stores), lies Ming Zhong. Ming Zhong, a Wu Han “secret,” boasts hundreds of stores, a massive movie theater, and more (not so) hidden Air Jordans (fake) than you can shake a stick at.

I am reiterating this shoppers’ metropolis as a “secret” because my friends always use this term To be exact, I’ve been here for the “first time” about 8 separate instances. (Each time, I couldn’t retain the Chinese name.) Instead of being a secret, this place is actually very popular. It’s not even one of a kind considering that copies of internationally-famous products can be purchased throughout Wu Han and probably every Chinese city.

Inside these malls and on every other side street, you can find identical copies to your favorite brands at astronomically low prices. The new Lebrons can be had for $12; Levi’s Copper Jeans, $10; Nike SB Dunks in all sorts of colors, $9; you get the idea.

Is supporting this wrong?

Probably. Big multinational companies can’t be blind to these practices as a legitimate Jordan brand store is located mere feet from a copy vendor, whose goods are mediocre yet passable. However, it seems that the Chinese police are not concerned about this, as I’ve seen them in Ming Zhong and other nearby copy-shops buying and laughing with the owners. Corporations must maintain the quality and the popularity of the brand name and many customers will still pay the high prices for the real thing.

I buy this stuff because, seriously, have you seen Chinese jeans? Also, I cannot afford the legit brands on my wages. So yes, you can find me buying fake Levi’s with my knockoff Converse jacket and the Jordan I’s, while looking for a Coach wallet for my mom. And until Nike charges less than $100 (20% of my monthly salary and 80% of most Wu Hanese) for a pair of shoes, I am ok with that.

Editor’s note: EP is proud to welcome Lee Frank to its editorial line up. Lee’s blog can be found at Wuhan, got you all in check.

Image from Nordstrom.com.